A bizarre black ring of smoke appeared in the sky after a ship burned and sank in the Philippines.

Footage shows the dark circular smoke slowly hanging over houses while retaining its shape in Manila City.

A few hours before the ring was spotted, flames ripped through a nearby wharf when a ship that docked to refuel caught fire.

Onlooker John Jopercyn Perez said: ‘I was surprised to see it. The ring was very unusual. My mother told me that a ship caught fire so maybe the smoke came from there.’

The rare smoke ring phenomenon is believed to have been caused by an explosion from a circular structure. The dense smoke mixes with gases and retains its ring structure while it is suspended in the atmosphere.

The smoke dissipated after almost half an hour of drifting high above the homes.